Stories from The Luton News: Thursday, February 3rd, 1916.

Zeppelin raids over various parts of the country on Monday night were cited at the meeting of the Luton Town Council on Tuesday as proof of the necessity of keeping the lighting of the town to the lowest possible limits.

Complaints were made that of late people had not been giving due observance to the Order for restricting the lighting of the town, and it was intimated that there would be further prosecutions whenever people were found to be disobeying the Order. The Mayor (Alderman John Staddon) intimated his intention of going round the town with a police inspector two nights a week to see that the Order was properly obeyed.

The discussion on the lighting question followed the reading of a letter from the Luton Tradesmen's Association. The Executive of the Association desired to call the attention of the Council to the fact that while many tradesmen were fully conforming to the Order, others were failing to restrict their lights properly, and were allowed to continue in this way. The members of the Association were not desirous of having any favours shown to them. They only asked that all should be placed on an equality, and were sure that it was only necessary to draw the Council's attention to the facts for a remedy to be forthcoming.

The Town Clerk said he had sent a copy of the letter to the Chief Constable, and told him the matter must receive immediate attention.

• A soldier who ran away from Markyate in May of last year, and was found on Tuesday morning working at the Palace Theatre, Luton, was later in the day remanded by Mr George Warren for escort. The member of the 1st Staffs Battery, Royal Field Artillery was in civilian clothes and claimed he had been discharged, but could not produce discharge papers.

• Lieut R. E. Oakley, son of Councillor A. A. Oakley, is home on leave from the trenches in France, where he is serving with the 2nd Beds Regiment. He arrived last Thursday and returns today after his second period of leave.

• Colonel Graham, No 6 Territorial Artillery School, Luton, desired to use the East Ward Recreation Ground for drilling men in gunnery. Luton Town Council's Parks Committee decided not to grant the application as the ground was not suitable for the purpose, being boggy and soft. No reply had been received on the alternative offer of the use of a portion of Bell Close common land, Havelock Road, subject to compensation being paid for any damage done to the ground.

• Mrs Garrett, of 82 New Town Street, Luton, has a husband and two sons serving their country. Husband Pte J. Garrett and second son Pte Wilfred Garrett are with the 3/5th Bedfordshire Regiment stationed at Halton Park, while the other son, Pte W. Garrett, belongs to the 1/5th Bedfords. He was wounded in Gallipoli but returned to the trenches, only to become a victim to dysentery.

• The following death notice was published: "GIDDINGS - January 29, at 48 Langley Street, Luton, Albert Edgar Giddings, aged 38." This would seem to relate to Boer War veteran Cpl Albert Giddins, who had been permanently discharged as medically unfit in the autumn of 1915 after re-enlisting in the Bedfordshire Regiment at the outbreak of war. He collapsed and died while working at Hubbard's dye works in Regent Street, Luton.

• But for the smart action of the police, serious damage might have resulted from a fire which broke out in the early hours of Monday morning at 99 Caste Street, Luton. The 2/4th Leicesters had just taken over the premises for use as stores, and at 2.50 am some of the goods deposited in the yard were found to be blazing. P Sgt Matsell and PCs Stanbridge and Frost threw burning things into the street and extinguished them with buckets of water.

• Illuminated addresses were presented to Mr George Warren and Mr Low Giddings to mark their retirement from the superintendency of the Waller Street Sunday School.

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